Lowell Elementary just hosted Hellgate, Big Sky, and Sentinel students who attended elementary there to do a graduation walk around the school, and chat with their old teachers about future plans. Students were led through the school by a small group of current attendees of Lowell, and taken on a short tour through the building where kids from each grade cheered them on.
As someone who attended Lowell for the entirety of elementary school, getting to go back and walk through the halls of the place that I spent so many of my formative years was incredibly nostalgic. Though I spent most of my time in Lowell before the school was remodeled, I still was hit by memories of my last few years of elementary in those halls and classrooms. It was bitter sweet to see how much the place had changed. Lowell has been privileged as a school to have a lot of remodeling done both by expanding the building itself, and tearing down the old playground to build a newer, safer structure.
At first I didn’t know if the graduation walk would still hit the same, considering so much had changed, but after seeing all of the young kids cheering us on, excited at the idea that they too would be in our shoes one day, I think that it has reminded me that change does not alter cherished memories, only add to them and make the experiences of the future generations even more special.
I think that events that are supposed to be happy and feel like a milestone are often twisted into something sad. Before the graduation walk at Lowell, I was searching up posts from others who had gone back to their own elementary schools. A common sentiment shared by those posting was how the younger kids were spending the moment wishing they were the seniors, and the seniors were wishing that they could just go back to simpler times. I was very scared that I was going to feel this way, more sad than excited and proud of mine and my peers’ accomplishments, but walking past all of those hopeful students, and past years teachers cheering us on gave me a different perspective. It pulled me out of my nostalgic slump, and reminded me that I too can be excited for myself and my future, while also acknowledging the fact that I missed the simplicity of the past.
Seeing all of the people I once shared a classroom with walking the halls with me one last time, especially those who went to other high schools was also very important. Outside of playful high school rivalry, and the distance of time, a lot of us were able to have a bit of small talk and catch up. Hearing what everyone’s plans were for the future brought us together one more time before we all go our separate ways and accomplish our dreams. It’s moments like these, ones of reflection, that really show the importance of reconnecting with the past, and putting in the effort to show up to your elementary school’s graduation walk, no matter how silly it may sound.
